Recently, India has been accused of throwing 40 Rohingyas into the sea and forcing them to return to Myanmar. There is a storm of criticism in the international community regarding this. In the meantime, a UN expert team has started an investigation into this allegation.
On the evening of May 8, a young Rohingya refugee in Delhi received a phone call from Myanmar. His parents were on the other end of the phone. The young man said that his parents told him that they had been thrown into the middle of the sea.
Just two days earlier, the young man had seen the police abducting his parents and 41 others from their home. Then, over the phone, his parents narrated a brutal experience to him.
They said that the Indian authorities had put them down in the Andaman Sea from a naval ship and forced them to swim to Myanmar territory wearing only life jackets.
Last Friday, five Rohingya refugees confirmed to the media that their family members were among the group who were detained by the Indian authorities on May 6. The group also included 15 Christians. They were taken on a plane and later dumped into the sea by the Indian Navy on May 8.
Lawyer Dilawar Hussain, who has been fighting for the rights of Rohingya refugees, said the affected families have filed a petition in India’s Supreme Court, requesting that they be brought back and allowed to live in Delhi again.
The Indian Navy and the Ministry of External Affairs declined to comment on the matter.
What is the UN saying?
The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights said in a statement on May 15 that at least 40 Rohingya refugees were detained in New Delhi and dumped into the sea by the Indian Navy near the India-Myanmar border. The refugees included children, women and the elderly. They swam to shore. However, it is not known where they are currently in Myanmar, the agency said.
In a statement, the UN said it called the incident “inconsiderate and unacceptable behaviour” and had appointed a UN expert to investigate.
The organization has called on the Indian government to stop the “inhuman and degrading treatment” of Rohingya refugees.
The UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, Tom Andrews, called the incident “a flagrant disregard for the lives and safety of those in need of international protection.” He also described it as “a horrific incident.”
Andrews added that such brutal acts are inhumane and a serious violation of the principle of “non-refoulement,” an international legal principle that states that no one should be returned to a place where their life or freedom would be threatened.
India’s position:
India does not have a national refugee policy or law. The country is not a party to the 1951 Refugee Convention or its 1967 Protocol. Yet, thousands of Muslim Rohingya refugees have sought refuge in India after facing persecution in Myanmar’s Rakhine State.
Concerns over Supreme Court’s stance
Last week, the Indian Supreme Court refused to hear a petition regarding the incident of 40 Rohingyas being thrown into the Andaman Sea. They described the incident as a ‘well-crafted story’.
Several legal experts have expressed deep concern over the stance of the Indian Supreme Court on the forced repatriation and throwing of Rohingyas into the sea.
At a press conference organized by the Civil Rights Protection Organization on Monday, eminent lawyer Prashant Bhushan said that it is very unfortunate that today the Supreme Court is using the same language that this inhumane government is using towards refugees. They say that India is not a Dharamshala.
In his words, you say ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbkam’ (the whole world is one family). You insist that the Constitution of India is humanitarian and Article 21 applies to all, citizens and non-citizens. But now you are saying, they have no rights, you can do whatever you want with them… you can throw them across the border into the sea!’
Sources: AP, The Hindu, The Telegraph.